Alyssa Healy has produced superb consecutive hundreds to steer her team into the last four of the World Cup, inspiring them to a commanding comprehensive trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, coming just four days after her similarly impressive 142-run knock that defeated hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84 not out) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a little bit poor with the gloves, and perhaps a little bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme expertise of Thursday’s chase as the pair put on 202 runs followed perhaps Australia’s weakest performance in the fielding department under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in particular for dropping a couple of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the batting, and fortunately succeeded,” she added.
From the time data was initially recorded on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six dropped opportunities represented Australia’s poorest fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that time of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
It helped the opposition to manage 198 for 9 after they had opted to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with a key batter compiling the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to making sure the team's target remained manageable.
Healy Delighted with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was delighted to learn that the victory, which places her undefeated side at the top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a place in the last-four. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old captain sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the World Cup, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she confronted as she pulled away from Litchfield in the latter stages in the knock after they had gone practically boundary-for-boundary towards their fifties.
Litchfield Impresses with First World Cup Half-Century
Left-hander Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first World Cup half-century off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Australian pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also failed to hold on to a tough skied one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also did take a clear chance off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire rejected their shout.
The recalled Darcie Brown bowled the quickest balls at the tournament so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowling option, conceding 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Stars
Instead, the spinners thrived, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if a fielder hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Fellow spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven overs) and Ash Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both contributed, while Sutherland consolidated her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and another's unbeaten 66 runs off 80 balls took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 against India a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said star performer Alana King. “No doubt it won't end here. We anticipate returning to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”
